


Only Human

by mggislife2789



Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, F/M, Reader-Insert
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-07
Updated: 2017-09-07
Packaged: 2018-12-24 21:15:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,188
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12021147
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mggislife2789/pseuds/mggislife2789
Summary: Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters or their original stories. This is only for fun. It's where my brain goes after the credits roll. No copyright intended. Better safe than sorry. ;)





	Only Human

As Aaron walked around campus, taking in his fellow students freaking out over what major they were going to declare, he was thankful he’d already chosen law as a long term goal; it made the double major of English and psychology an easy choice. It was a good base for what he wanted to do in the long run. It was practically chosen for him. Ever since he was a child, he’d been inspired by his father to enter the field, so he’d gone straight into college his freshman year and declared before everyone else. 

Now there wasn’t a strict deadline, but it was approaching the end of his sophomore year, so his fellow students were all freaking out about not having chosen a major yet. 

With a crazy amount of papers due and tests to study for before the end of the semester, Aaron decided to head to the library to get some work done. Before he walked into the expansive school library, he grabbed a cup of coffee from the cafeteria. He actually liked school; he really did. He just hated the grind of it. It could be really overwhelming at certain times and the pressure to perform well, especially from his father was something that always weighed heavily upon him toward the end of the semester. 

Maybe that was why he immediately tuned into the sound of someone crying. Whoever it was desperately tried to stifle the sounds in their sleeve, but it wasn’t working. As he rounded the corner looking for the source of the crying, he ran into a fellow classmate - one he hated. Bradley was a Class-A douchebag who was in college to have sex and drink, but apparently he got some crap from his father about his failing grades, so that’s why he was in the library. “Some chick won’t stop crying,” he said angrily. 

“Did you think about asking her why she was crying?” Aaron asked, annoyed at his classmates lack of caring about anyone but himself. 

Exasperatedly, he shook his head and left, searching for another area of the library where he might be able to study so he didn’t fail out. Aaron pushed onward, walking around corner after corner and eventually stumbling across a woman he knew but didn’t have many classes with - Y/N Y/L/N. “Y/N?” He asked softly, watching as she pulled at the sides of her hair. 

When she turned to face him, his heart dropped for her. Through the tears, he could see the pressure she was facing. This wasn’t a missed boyfriend cry, or a fight with a best friend cry; this was the kind of cry one would feel when the world was just too much and they couldn’t take the pressure anymore. Aaron didn’t cry often, but taking 12 or 15 or 18 credits at a time could drive anyone to the brink over time. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I must be making all kinds of noise.” She reached down to rifle through her bag, presumably for a tissue, but she couldn’t find any. It was a good thing Aaron had recently had a cold, because he still had a pack in his pocket and he reached out to hand it to her.

“I just wanted to see if you were okay?” He asked. “Is there anything I can do?”

She smiled softly, but shook her head. “Unless you want to take this calculus test for me, probably not.”

Math was definitely not Aaron’s strong suit. “How long have you studied for this test?” He asked. He sensed she was an over-preparer and was putting undue pressure on herself. 

“Two weeks. Nearly two hours a day. And that’s just for this class,” she replied as she blew her nose. She was probably on a very different career path from him, which is why they hadn’t crossed paths often. It was too bad, because she seemed really nice. 

“You’re only human,” he said with a smile, sitting down next to her at the library table. “If you push yourself too much, you’ll crash and break. You’re not a machine.” He pivoted his chair toward her and placed his hand over hers. “Now, I know this is easier said than done, but based on what you’ve said, you’ve studied plenty. It would probably do your brain better if you gave it a break and got some sleep, or at least you did something that you wanted to do instead of this. You’re not a machine.”

A strained smile played its way across her face as she wiped the newly forming tears away. “I know you’re right. I just have a lot of pressure at home. My dad mostly. And I just…I put a lot on myself when I probably shouldn’t.”

Aaron nodded, grabbing her hand a little tighter. “I know where you’re coming from. I’ve got a lot of pressure from my dad too. But you’ve studied so much. I feel like studying anymore would only be a negative. Give your brain time to breath.”

“Thanks. It’s Aaron, right?” she asked. “Aaron Hotchner?”

“Yup. I’m a psych and English double major. You?”

Her face lit up, the tears fading away now that she finally had something else to think of. “I’m a mathematics major. I hope to go into engineering eventually. You here to study too?”

“Yea, unfortunately. I have a psych test coming up. I did make flashcards though, so hopefully things should go pretty smoothly.” After ensuring that she was okay, he picked up his backpack and turned to leave, but her voice called him back.

“Do you need help studying?” she asked sweetly. “I know if I go back to my dorm I’ll probably just sit there and perseverate on this test. If you want I could help you run through your flash cards.”

He could’ve studied on his own. He tended to do his best studying that way, but for some reason he was very invested in making sure that she wasn’t sad. “I’d like that.“

“Cool. Thanks for helping me keep my mind off things. How about you go grab a table and I’ll go grab something to eat from the cafeteria?”

After finding a table, the two parted ways so she could go get something to eat and upon her return, Y/N helped Aaron drill his psych flashcards until he could recite them forwards and backwards. “Is there any chance that I could get your number? I mean I’d like to know how you do on your test,” he said with a smirk. 

“Is that all you want my number for?” she chuckled softly.

He darted his eyes away for a moment. “Maybe not the only reason.”

She giggled as they exchanged numbers. He was thankful he’d stopped to make sure she was okay. Now he had a date and she felt better. Seeing her smile was worth it. 

They parted ways for the night, her smile wide and her shoulders relaxed, but not before he reminded her. “You’re only human, remember? Just take a breath and you’ll be fine. I promise.”


End file.
